Chapter 20 Aethelred Acquisitions
Days bled into a monotonous sequence of surveillance. The penthouse, beautiful and spacious, felt like a pressure cooker. I was constantly aware of the security team just beyond the sliding door silent, professional guards who logged every delivery, every visitor, and every cough. I was free, but I was also evidence, carefully preserved and monitored.
The forced stillness, however, proved useful. I used the time to systematically go over every detail of Adrian’s behavior in the days leading up to his death, trying to find a pattern, a message. I was certain that the bail payment, the unknown patron, and the severity of Ethan's framing were all interconnected.
Clara returned three days later, exhausted and clearly rattled. She didn't bother with small talk.
"Cole Enterprises is a fortress, Lila," she reported, dumping her briefcase on the dining table. "The Board has issued a complete gag order. Any employee attempting to speak about Adrian, his death, or the aftermath is immediately terminated. They're trying to project stability, but it smells like a cover-up."
"And Arthur Thornton?" I asked, pouring her a glass of water, my hand trembling slightly.
"Officially? Clean slate. He retired a year ago after a minor heart issue. But I managed to get a contact a junior analyst who worked on the acquisition deal Thornton handled before his retirement. The analyst mentioned that the deal was rushed, and there were massive discrepancies in the valuation of the target company, something Adrian was supposedly reviewing right before… the accident."
Valuation discrepancies. The word sounded dry and technical, but it was the first concrete piece of information that didn't revolve around my personal life.
"Ethan isn't just seeking revenge, Clara," I stated, walking over to the immense glass wall. "He's going after the company’s financial integrity. That bag of classified documents we were convicted over it wasn't market projections. It was the proof of that valuation fraud, the corruption that went back to Thornton."
I looked down at the street below, picturing Adrian’s face, intense and focused, as he yanked me through the service corridor. He hadn't been fleeing the police; he had been trying to get the evidence to safety before the internal lockdown cut off his secure line.
"The key is the benefactor," I continued, turning to Clara. "Adrian was too smart to trust his life and a ten million dollar secret to a random associate. This person, or group, is Adrian's contingency. They are either the only person he trusted with the truth about Thornton, or they are the only ones capable of fighting Stirling-Hale at this level."
Clara ran a hand through her hair. "The only name I got and this is completely off the record was that the funds were funneled through an offshore account connected to a shell corporation called Aethelred Acquisitions."
Aethelred Acquisitions. It sounded ancient and powerful. It meant nothing to me, but I knew it was the breadcrumb Adrian had left behind.
“Ethan’s plan was brilliant,” I mused, touching my abdomen. “He used a drunken mistake to destroy Adrian's reputation and create the motive for my ‘crime.’ But the real crime was the corporate fraud he was trying to expose to seize power. And now, the babyAdrian's last, living piece of evidence is the only thing keeping me out of a prison cell, thanks to Aethelred.”
“So, what now?” Clara asked, her voice tired. “We can’t file the appeal yet; we have no new evidence to overturn the conviction, only theories about a dead partner’s fraud.”
I looked at the ankle monitor, then at the vast, impersonal luxury of the apartment. “Now, we play their game. Aethelred paid the price. They control the narrative, and they control my location. They want the child safe, and they want the truth out or they want to use the truth. Either way, they need me to be their eyes and ears."
"Clara," I said, my voice hardening with a new, dangerous resolve. "We need to find out who runs Aethelred Acquisitions. That person holds the key to Arthur Thornton, Adrian's death, and our freedom. And if they helped me, they must believe I'm innocent. They are my only hope."
The benefactor's identity, linked to Aethelred Acquisitions, is now the central mystery.